If a theatre says that somebody is a dead head, that means that the person was admitted into the theatre for free. There was no type of contribution by paying for a ticket or otherwise. One theory is that the people who paid for tickets were called livestalk, so those who did not were called deadheads. The first time that deadheads seems to be found is print, it is rendered as "dead-heads" and is referring to people who were riding railroad trains without paying for the ride. This was in the October 12, 1839 edition of the Maumee City Express of Maumee, Ohio. The article was about illegal voters. The quote read, "Michigan was also laid under tribute, and the rail road cars, we understand were crowded on the day of election with dead-heads." It is reported that another appearance of the term, this time related to theatre, appeared in the January 1841 edition of The Spirit of the Times. I could not find any evidence of this, but it is said to have read, "The house on Tuesday was filled as far as $300 could fill, barring ‘the dead heads’." The term then appeared in the October 7, 1841 edition of The New York Tribune in an article called "Trial of Alex. McLeod." It seems to be from the reporting of the testimony of John C. Haggerty. It says, "I was the master of a vessel that season; I was only a passenger on the Caroline; paid no passage; it is not the custom for sailors to pay; they are called dead-heads; it is the custom for such to help when they are wanted."
The term then appeared in the December 28, 1850 edition of Household Words in the article called "Railway Waifs and Strays." Charles Dickens wrote, " Slim umbrellas, of foreign extraction, in polished leather cases, stood beside family concerns which would answer for pic-nic tents, having convenient wires to hang up the ladies' bonnets. There were some with comic handles carved to resemble Punch and Tim Bobbin, grimly contrasting with ivory Death's-heads. The umbrella shelf, in short, is a collection of silk, gingham, and whalebone characters, as palpable as those of Theophrastus or La Bruyère." Then in the October 1899 to March 1900 edition of The English Illustrated Magazine in an article called "Nothing New Under the Sun: About many Things in the Naples Museum which the Ancient Romans used in Daily Life much as they are used To-Day," Frederick Dolman wrote, "One or two glass vessels of curious shape are supposed to be wine-strainers, but it is not clear in what way they were used; and still more mysterious, it may be added, is the purpose served by the many ivory "death's-heads" which have been found in various places and sent to the Naples Museum."
While Dolman said that the death's heads had a mysterious purpose, in December 1901, R.J. Broadbent in A History of Pantomime wrote, "The proficients in this way let themselves out for hir to the poets, actors, &c., and were so disposed as to support a loud applause. These they called Laudicena. At the end of the play, a loud peal of applause was expected, and even asked of the audience either by the chorus or by the person who spoke last. The formula was 'Spectator Claudite,' or 'Valete et Plaudite.' The applauders were divided into Chori, and disposed in theatres opposite to each other, like the choristers in cathedrals, so that there was a kind of concert applause. The free admission tickets were small ivory death's heads, and specimens of these are to be seen in the Museum of Naples. From this custom, it is stated, that we derive our word "Deadhead," as denoting one who has a free entrance to place of amusement." This gives the idea that people who were used for clapping or other appropriate noise that was wanted in the audience were able to see the performance for free and were given a carving of a skull made from ivory. This seems to be a practice that is similar to the late 18th century French theatre practice of hiring claquers.
Then in the December 1, 1906 edition of The Spectator, a letter to the editor about the term was answered. The answer read, "'Deadhead' is most commonly employed in theatrical slang. The sting in the word is due to the fact that the man who does not pay for his ticket, but is present by favour, has no real status at the performance. He is a cipher, whose judgment can count for little more than that of the salaried services of the theatre. We do not, of course, admit the validity of Mr. Lloyd-George's innuendo." Then in the July - December 1907 Volume L edition of Life in the Drama section when discussing sales and revenue for the entertainment business, the author wrote, ""Complete truth-telling is likely to mean a loss of advertising patronage; also a loss of deadhead theatre tickets dear to the editorial heart and convenient to use for the repayment of social and business obligations."
The origin of deadhead is literally the words dead plus head. The origin of the word dead comes from the Middle English word deed or the Old English word dēad. It might also be descended from the Gothic word dauths, the German word tot, or the Old Norse word daudhr. The word head comes from the Middle English word he(v)ed or the Old English word hēafod. It may also be descended from the Old High German word houbit or the Gothic word haubith. These are akin to the Old English prefix hafud- as in hafudland meaning headland, the Old Norse word hǫfuth, or the Latin word caput.
The word deadhead has come to be employed in many different disciplines in life. The reason for a truck that is not towing any shipment of a product is that it came from the fact that if a truck was not towing shipment, it did not make the company any money and may even end up costing the company. This was like how people that did not have to pay for tickets to see a show did not make the theatre any money.
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